


the sixth planet

by allusive



Series: pokeglobal 3 [2]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Diamond & Pearl & Platinum | Pokemon Diamond Pearl Platinum Versions
Genre: Gen, M/M, saturn gets trolled
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:27:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,316
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25119892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allusive/pseuds/allusive
Summary: (beats the shit out of saturn) yeah!saturn learns what it's like to love, then lose.A backstory written for Jin Anchikar, also known as Saturn.
Relationships: Akagi | Cyrus & Saturn, Saturn/Zero (Pokemon)
Series: pokeglobal 3 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1852948
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	the sixth planet

In this world, there are winners and losers. The circumstances of your birth, as an example, is a large factor in what determines you being a winner. Your lineage, health — everything that you’re given in the beginning is an unfair dice roll that leaves some at the bottom no matter how hard they work to fix it. 

Thankfully, Jin was fairly lucky. Born into a wealthy family was every kid's dream— he was able to have almost everything he'd wanted as a child. Toys, whatever snacks he was craving, nothing was out of the way for him. Despite this, Jin was never a greedy child, only asking for sliced fruit occasionally to sate his hunger between meals (unlike his older siblings, who'd gorge themselves on imported sweets and cheese platters, and render themselves unable to eat dinner) and nothing but paper and crayons for drawing. Even though he'd draw often, his favourite hobby had always been  _ stargazing _ . Contrary to winning the lottery on what family he'd been born into, Jin was sickly. Born with a weak body, he'd often fall sick with fevers, which didn't help his asthma, either. He was almost always confined to his room, unable to leave his bed. The room wasn't as large as his siblings, but it didn't matter to him. It was his entire world, the plastic glow in the dark stars glued to the ceiling bringing him comfort during the nights where the clouds would cover the real ones, and wallpaper with labeled constellations (that he'd memorized within the first couple of days that it was put up). 

For his 5th birthday, he received a telescope, his parents (somehow) noticing how much he loved the twinkling of the stars in the sky— which was what the servants had told him. He already knew from a young age that his parents were never aware of his interest in space, nor of his birthday at all— he knew that it was just their assistant who'd sent him the gift. Jin was a useless frail child to them. His mother was only his parent in name— she never visited in fear of catching his sicknesses, and he'd only ever seen his father once, that he remembered. But Jin didn't mind. Despite being lonely, he had the stars to keep him company. Space had always fascinated him. He loved all the planets, the milky way— he thought it was beautiful. How he'd love to be able to leave his room, leave the city, the country, the  _ earth _ — he wanted to soar above it all, get closer to the twinkling stars.. His focus on his daydreams often interfered with his studies, drawings of stars and constellations in the place of a fill-in-the-blank question's answer. Despite their disinterest in his hobbies and him as a whole, his parents took Jin's studies  _ very  _ seriously. 

A literal slap to his face as he turned 13 years old shocked him, the lingering pain of his mother's nails digging into the delicate skin of his cheek left him reeling on the floor, with the assignment papers crumpled and scattered on the floor around him. 

" _ Jin _ ," She'd cried, as if she were the one who'd been hurt. " _ We've given you everything! How could you disappoint us like this?"  _ It was funny— his score hadn't even been that low. But he couldn't say anything. He'd never talk back, especially not now. " _ Jin _ ." His father spoke soon after, voice deep. " _ You will go to a boarding school. And you will get your grades up, or you will never be welcome in this household again." _

That was the last time he'd ever see them again— something that he would not learn until the years had passed. With nothing but a suitcase containing clothing and his telescope, he was sent off to the boarding school. If at the least he could see the stars, then everything was alright with him. The room he was assigned was not unlike his own room at his home. It was small, and there were no stars on the ceiling, but it would do. The single skylight would allow him to be happy. There were clouds almost every night. On the nights where the sky was clear, the angle of the skylight (the only window in the room) prevented almost any view of the night sky. Jin's hopes had always been tied to the stars. Without the light from them, he had nothing else. He'd sneak outside every other night, desperately— until he was caught, and returned to his room, which was then locked from the outside by a teacher.

His life at the school was anything but fun _.  _ Having transferred in halfway through the semester, Jin was not welcomed, everyone having formed their own groups. Even the outcasted kids wouldn't speak to him, leaving him as a vulnerable stray, an easy target to pick on. Almost every day without fail, he’d be forced to the washroom— he was their favorite one to bully, he’d discover. Jin had gotten used to it after days of it happening, and as they’d dunk his face into a toilet he could do nothing but bear it, refusing to acknowledge his tormentors. The sound of the toilet flushing echoed in his ears every night, unable to hear anything else as he lay on the dirty floor of the washroom, the grime in between the tiles not even an incentive to move despite his disgust.  _ There seemed to be a trend with skylights in this school _ , he thought, staring upwards at the sky above him through the dusty glass. It was another cloudy night, the darkness swallowing the stars once more.

His poor health combined with the fact that he’d often walk back to his room from the other building in the cold, hair dripping with disgustingly muddy water got him sick often. After spending a week bedridden in his room, his tormentors decided to visit him. Masquerading as his friends in order to get access from the teacher, they’d come to his room while he was out and destroyed it all—his clothes were shredded, his belongings scattered and destroyed, and the telescope shattered and bent on the floor in the middle like a fucked-up art project. He’d walked in on them while they were just about finishing ruining it all, laughing at him like it was all a joke. 

Jin had never retaliated to any of their torment. No matter how terrible it got, no matter how much bullying or injuries he’d been on the receiving end of, he’d never spoke back, he’d never raised a hand in a returning blow. Angering others was something that he’d avoided, but as he stood there, nothing left but himself and the boys laughing behind him who found amusement in belittling him, something broke. Picking up the broken telescope, in his hand, he’s quiet before he throws his whole body’s force into a motion that leaves one of the boys on the floor. The others immediately scatter, crimson leaking from the broken nose of the one on the floor as he lays there motionless. Another boy scrambles to get him up, and Jin doesn’t stop him, glaring instead as he runs off.

They leave him alone, after that.

He’d spend hours standing in the shower, the hot water scalding his skin— the heat making up for the warmth that he’d never feel from other people. A dangerous hatred begins to bubble up in him, and he finds himself fueled by spite for the rest of his childhood, leaking into his teenage years. With nothing else to do but pour himself into his work, he studied. He studied and studied, hoping to gain his parent’s approval once more so he would be able to go back to his room, go back to being the starry eyed child that he’d left behind. But ultimately, his parents would never visit. He already knew that, deep down. The only thing that would stay with him in his world were the stars.

The school would keep him there until he was 17 years old, the age where he would meet his guiding star. Sirius is the brightest star in the sky, and as he locked eyes with the man that was named the same, he knew that he would follow him to the ends of the galaxy. It was purely chance that they’d met— a passing meeting, and it was only a second of eye contact before Cyrus would approach him himself. He became one of the first members of Team Galactic, serving as Cyrus’s right hand. He was now _Saturn,_ the sixth planet from the sun. Like the planet he was named after, Saturn was surrounded by a ring of ice, preventing anyone from getting close. “It’s a fitting name”, Cyrus had told him. “Saturn appears just as bright as Sirius, due to its albedo. We are the same. Your light will grow brighter, the brighter the light you are reflecting.”

Team Galactic was always in need of new members. Recruitment was easy, the speeches after? Not so much. Cyrus was a man of very few words, something that Saturn would learn. Leaving him in charge of rallying the recruits was a  _ terrible  _ idea, no matter how much he believed in Cyrus’s orders. After the absolute  _ trainwreck _ of a speech he’d pulled off, he found himself red-faced walking alongside Cyrus in the halls of Galactic’s building. Cyrus’s charisma could rally the recruit’s spirit easily — entrusting him to it was something that he did not understand. 

“Master Cyrus.” He spoke, questioning. “I don’t understand why you would leave something like that to me.”

“Are you questioning me?” Cyrus replied, voice unwavering. “No,” Saturn shook his head, looking forward as they continued through the halls. “I just.. You’re much better at it than I am. I idolize you. I’m sure that.. I’m sure that they would do the same, if you spoke to them-”

“Have you ever heard of Binary stars, Saturn?” He interrupts, stopping to stare at him. Saturn stops, and despite his knowledge of constellations he’s never heard the term before. He shakes his head, quiet, slightly ashamed of his lack of knowledge. "It's a system in which two stars orbit around each other in harmony. From a distance, they appear as one identical, unyielding light. And yet, upon close scrutinization, they are indeed similar, but still unique." With the end of his sentence he continues walking, his footsteps echoing on the hard flooring. "Can you solve the little puzzle of why I asked?"

Saturn is quiet for a moment, a short moment of contemplation before he speaks again. “It’s us..?” Cyrus stops in his tracks, only a few paces away from him as he turns, eyes closed before he  _ smiles,  _ genuinely and truly. “I want you to be my second star, Saturn.” A pause. “That other light. We will create a better world together. I want you to help me.” 

He hadn’t considered then, what those words truly meant. He was so  _ happy _ to finally have someone that wanted him there, someone who understood his use. He worked harder than he ever had, happy with every order that he received. His assigned room in the Galactic apartments was on the highest floor, after he’d mentioned to Cyrus that he loved the stars. The view from the floor to ceiling windows was beautiful, the city skyline sparkling as he stood on the balcony.

Saturn was put in charge of Team Galactic’s most important project — research on the Lake Guardians, and Dialga and Palkia. Along with Charon, another Galactic commander, research on the deities goes smoothly. Jupiter and Mars, newer commanders, are appointed to help. He has little to no interest in them after watching them bicker, but what he does take interest in is Charon’s grandson. Nil  Krovopuskov, or  _ Zero,  _ as his moniker is. He does things for him then and again, hoping to gain his favor. He’s the first person he’s ever wanted as a friend, the first person who he’s able to see eye to eye with. Nil is a quiet man, but there’s a look of loneliness in his eyes, a hidden darkness in his golden orbs that Jin knows about more than he should. 

As the time passes, Saturn ignores the signs. He knows Cyrus is planning something  _ more,  _ but he never looks into it— after years of following him unquestioningly, he wouldn’t start doubting him now. Cyrus is preoccupied with a child. He sees something in her, like how he saw something in him. A girl so young couldn’t possibly interfere with the plans that they’d put into motion, so he thinks nothing of it. The champion is another story, but he doubts she can stop them either. The red chain is already finished, and the lake guardians captured. Everything is too far along for interference. 

As he watches what happens on the screen, he barely processes it. Cyrus is gone. Swallowed by the darkness, in the distortion world. Years of plans leading up to this, and he hadn’t seen it coming. It’s more accurate to say that he  _ did _ see it coming — he just didn’t  _ want _ to.

“Master Cyrus! Please respond!” He spoke into the headset, desperate. “Master Cyrus! Master Cyrus! _ ”  _ He cries, watching the static on the screen. “ _ Where are you?” _

“Do not look for me.” His voice answers, as unwavering as it  _ always  _ is. It flickers out for a moment, and Jin cries out again. “ _ Master Cyrus!” _

Cyrus speaks once again, in a softer tone, as if to answer his pleas. "Though they follow and lead one another, though they are so close and yet so distant from one another; binary stars never once cross paths or intersect.” He says, with a tenderness to his voice that Jin doesn’t understand. 

“Farewell, my Canopus."

It’s the last he’ll ever hear of him.


End file.
